Youth Sport Coaches’ Perspective on Positive Youth Development and its Worth in Mainstream Coach Education Courses

Abstract

Positive youth development (PYD) is a framework that has been widely used within sport research to outline sport’s potential as a developmental context. Past research has indicated how coaches play important roles in facilitating PYD through sport and yet, PYD-related material remains largely absent from mainstream coach education courses (CEC). The purpose of the current study was to examine youth sport coaches’ perspective on PYD and its worth in mainstream coach education courses. The participants were twelve Portuguese youth field hockey coaches (one female and eleven males) who coached athletes between four and eighteen years of age. Findings indicated that coaches valued PYD within their coaching philosophy, but were also highly motivated by performance and improving their players’ motor skills. The participants deemed that CEC generally lack PYD-related material, adding that practical strategies informed by the PYD approach should be inherently part of CEC delivery. The findings have practical implications for coach educators, indicating a need and a desire on the part of coaches to have PYD-related content in mainstream CEC.

Coach Education and Positive Youth Development as a Means of Improving Australian Sport

“…A lack of education on positive youth development in sport (Erickson et al, 2008;Harwood, 2008;Santos et al, 2017) may attribute to coaching mistakes and limitations (Lerner et al, 2005;Strachan et al, 2016) that negatively influence athletes (Petitpas et al, 2005;Cote et al, 2010;Vella et al, 2013). Positive youth development coach education programs help coaches develop confidence (Falcao et al, 2012;Santos et al, 2017), self-awareness (Smith and Smoll, 1997) and knowledge (Vella et al, 2013) in fostering positive development in athletes. Despite the advantages of educating coaches on positive youth development, most compulsory coach education courses focus primarily on sporting skills and tactics (Santos et al, 2017).…”

Coaching life skills through sport: An application of the teaching personal and social responsibility model to youth sport in eSwatini

“…), responsibilities at home, lack of competent and highly trained coaches, and low parental support (Whitley et al, 2013). Some of these barriers are consistent with those identified in Western contexts (Bean & Forneris, 2017;Santos et al, 2017). That is, research indicates that even when coaches have been fortunate enough to participate in coaching education curriculum, there is limited focus in these courses on how to facilitate life skills development (Santos et al, 2017).…”

“…Some of these barriers are consistent with those identified in Western contexts (Bean & Forneris, 2017;Santos et al, 2017). That is, research indicates that even when coaches have been fortunate enough to participate in coaching education curriculum, there is limited focus in these courses on how to facilitate life skills development (Santos et al, 2017). Whitley, Gould, Wright, and Hayden (2017) outlined several additional barriers to emphasizing life skills development in underserved communities in South Africa.…”

Aplicación del modelo de las 5Cs para la formación de entrenadores: Un ejemplo de práctica basada en la evidencia.

“…Sin embargo, en algunos estudios e intervenciones tradicionales realizadas con entrenadores, no tenían en cuenta los diferentes escenarios del contexto de entrenamiento (i.e., pre-competición, entrenamiento, post-competición, competición), ni hacían referencia a situaciones específicas de cada deporte y, además, creían que no tenían recursos suficientes para incorporar el trabajo de habilidades psicosociales en sus sesiones (Harwood, 2016;Santos et al, 2019). Esta afirmación va en línea con la concepción de que para poder influir positivamente en sus deportistas es importante considerar la medida en que se ven capaces de influir en el aprendizaje y el rendimiento de sus deportistas (i.e., Coaching efficacy; Feltz et al,1999), además de promover reflexiones sobre su filosofía y trabajar las habilidades necesarias para que puedan desarrollar estas estrategias (Santos et al, 2017).…”